The Advent of Shadow
by The Undying One
Summary: A tale that brings to life the modding aspect of Morrowind, this story revolves around the Alu'Couatl Dryconys Netharyn in his quest to return the world to shadow once more.
1. Prologue

**I**n the beginning, there was Light. A burning globe of divine creation, the Light was surrounded only by Absolute Darkness. This in turn brought life to Shadow, and it was in this that the Elder Gods breathed life into the world.

Now the world revolved around the Light, but Absolute Darkness fought to contain and control it. Life would be swallowed by the Darkness, leaving only the essence of what once was. This was in turn assimilated by Shadow, which existed in the dark recesses of the earth. Throughout the eons, however, the Light slowly bolstered its hold upon the world, and soon choked the Darkness into Shadow and in turn drove the Shadow into the Abyss. Here, the remnants of Shadow coalesced into its own reality, the Demiplane of Shadow. Here, the ancient terrors of the world were given life, and Shadow once more returned to the earth. This brought about the cycles of day and night, the ordered struggle of Light and Darkness.

It is in this Demiplane that the Couatl were created, and it is upon the earth that they were given form. In time, the beastly Couatl would give rise to another fell race, the Alu'Couatl, who would, in turn, release the souls of the living into the Shadow from which they were originally created. This is the tale of one such creature that was released into the unsuspecting world below…

**Chapter 1**

Vvardenfell. It had been many years since last I walked upon its scarred soil. The Telvanni sought to imprison me, study me, learn from me, but I would have nothing of it. Oh no, even as they would move me from one prison to the next, I secretly planned my escape. That poor, pathetic, fool; he thought he was being released today. What was his name? Ah yes, Jiub. Even now, as we sail towards some sinkhole village, he is unaware of his intended fate. His release documents were easy enough to procure – it's amazing how the guards aboard this vessel can so easily be manipulated – and the necessary adjustments were easier still to forge. What's even more pitiful is that this wretched creature before me actually believes we share some sort of bond…

"Quiet, here comes the guard," Jiub whispers to me. Idiot. I'm perfectly aware of the guard. I'm sure his loud stomping can be heard as far out as the docks!

"Come with me," the guard instructed. I silently nod and dutifully follow his lead. Leading me to the upper deck hatch, he lumbers onward like a drunken pig on his way to the slough. By the Gods! He's even so lazy as to not lead me through the hatch! What if I try to escape? Will he snap at my heels and try to pull me off the ladder? Too late by then. However, I can't simply jump ship, for that would be foolishness; after all, I am being released. Rather, Jiub is being released, or was. Heh heh heh. Pathetic fool.

Back into the open air, I find this hole in the ground to be just that. Seyda Neen is what I heard the guard call it, and it isn't much to look at. It reeks of rotten fish here! The dock is all but collapsed; each step brings with it the wonder of whether I'm going to fall through or not. The boat wasn't that much better off – I'm surprised it could even float at all! – its sails tattered and its hull weeping sea water into the hold. The guards aren't much to look at, either. Must not have much of a budget, judging by the rust on their armor. Inquisitive, though. This guard standing in my way on the dock wants to know a little about where I come from. Naturally, I lie and tell him I hail from Solstheim to the far north.

"I'm sure you'll fit right in. Follow me up to the Census Office…" he replies. Fit right in? Yeah, I'm sure there are many large, winged, serpent-men running around Vvardenfell. The building he leads me to is directly opposite the dock. Hmph. Maybe he thinks I would have gotten myself lost walking a straight line.

Inside the office, an old man sits quietly behind a desk. A guard nearby watches me suspiciously. Naturally, my escort didn't enter the building with me. Must have something better to do.

"Ah, yes. We've been expecting you. You'll have to answer a few short questions before you are officially released. There are…wait a second, I thought you were supposed to be a Dunmer?" he asks. Guess they aren't all unintelligent little rats.

"You mussst be missstaken," I tell him. Funny, he looks a little awkward. I hand him my papers.

"I'm sorry; there must have been some sort of mix-up. I wasn't expecting an Argonian." Argonian? What a stupid little man! I take back what I said about him earlier. He signs off on the papers after asking me about what sign I was born under – what the hell does that matter?! – and what my occupation is. Occupation? I'm a prisoner. PRI-SON-ER!! Instead I tell him I'm a _Shadow Fiend_. The fool actually wrote that down! Once I have my papers, he directs me to the door by the guard with a staring problem. As I pass by him, I silently hiss under my breath. He looks at me and I look right back.

"I'll sssee you later, friend," I tell him. He puts his hand to the pommel of his sword and smiles. Yeah, I'll see him soon enough.

The door leads into a room void of human life. On a nearby table, a dagger is stuck into the wood. I quickly grab it and proceed through the next door, which leads to some sort of back yard. A stone wall surrounds the yard not cordoned off by the two adjacent buildings, and a barrel sits next to the only other door here. As I walk up to the other door, a strange feeling draws me to the barrel. 

The barrel, uninterestingly enough, is meant to capture rain water, which these degenerates probably use to bathe and drink with. At the bottom of the barrel in the deep water is what appears to be a gold ring. I reach into the warm water and snatch the ring, promptly hiding it in my enclosed fist. Realizing that I still hold the dagger I found in my other hand, I slip the small blade into my belt and proceed through the next door.

Here a man sits behind another desk with the company of a couple of guards. The guards pay no attention to me, apparently being interested in the wall instead. The man introduces himself as Socucius Ergalla and asks for my papers. He then hands me a package to deliver to someone named Caius Cosades in the city of Balmora, a day's journey from here. Then he instructs me to the door. Not very friendly, is he?

"One other thing, please," he says as I'm about to leave. "There have been reports of some strange activity at the island fortress of Firemoth. Once your business with Caius has concluded, I need you to return here to investigate. You will be compensated for any trouble this may cause you, citizen. That is all. You may leave." How arrogant! We shall see. An island fortress may be just what I need to progress my influence here. We shall see.

Outside, I am greeted once more by the stale air and fish smell from the docks nearby. The village is busier than I thought it would be; each entity here is a potential enemy. There aren't that many buildings here, just enough to confirm the hole in the ground I thought at first impression. Surprisingly, there are many guards, leading me to believe that maybe they release all of their prisoners here. Off in the distance, a lighthouse marks treacherous cliffs with its fiery light, or perhaps would had it been night. On the opposite side of town, a tall…

"Excuse me, have you seen my ring? My name is Fargoth and I can't seem to fi…" Some little troll interrupted my train of thought, so I introduced his face to the backside of my fist. He promptly crumples to the ground. Surprisingly, no one saw the deed take place.

"I didn't asssk you for your name," I hiss as I walk away from what is no doubt his lifeless body by now. It was like hitting a sponge. Wiping the blood from the back of my wrist, I remember the ring I found in the barrel and unclench the fist I hit him with. Hmm, I wonder if this was _his_ ring. I toss it behind me to where I left poor Fargoth and continue towards what looks like some sort of tavern. A shop sign hangs beneath it, and I am in dire need of some supplies. I follow what resembles another dock around the backside of the tavern and step inside. 

Along the walls are various wares of poor or near-poor quality, not too surprising if you ask me. In the back of the room, a flight of stairs rises up into the ceiling where the sound of revelry and bard-song pollutes the room. A woman stands nearby looking at some items on the table while a man stands behind a counter polishing a blade. 

"Can I help you?" he asks. I nod and place my dagger on the counter.

"What can I trade for thisss?" I ask.

"Nothing much," he says while studying it intently. "It doesn't seem to be worth much." Maybe I should have kept the ring. The woman by the table steps outside, leaving the shopkeeper and me alone for the moment. I retrieve my dagger and look around some more, inching my way closer to the wall behind the counter. The shopkeeper returns to polishing his blade.

"Nissse weaponsss you have here," I casually say, but without response. The shopkeeper had finished polishing his blade and was placing it in the corner near to him, his back now turned away from me. As he bent down to lay the sword against the wall, I kick him, taking him by surprise. He collides with the wall and stumbles back, at which point I thrust the blade into his back. He gurgles as blood fills his throat, but being as impatient as I am, I snap his neck and let him fall to the floor. Just then, a customer enters the shop – I barely had time to kick his body closer to the counter where it could not be seen! – and asks me where the shopkeeper is.

"He hasss retired. This shop is under new management now. Me. What do you want, prey?" He cautiously steps up to the counter and produces a small gold ring, asking me how much I would give him for it. How ironic that this is the same ring I found earlier! I offer him some loose change on the counter – the sum of 12 gold pieces – and he reluctantly accepts the offer. He probably would have haggled first, but the glare I gave him while he looked disappointedly at the measly offerings must have changed his mind. He then takes his newfound wealth to the tavern upstairs, and I quickly grab the little cash box and the sword that the shopkeeper was polishing and exit the shop with the sound of footsteps descending the stairs behind me. 

Once outside, a quick dive into the water followed by a short swim to the lighthouse I spied earlier allows me to narrowly escape the mob of angry drunkards pouring out of the shop door. The guards quickly mobilize, so I duck into the lighthouse. Inside, the woman from before looks at me angrily and demands to know why I followed her. I silence her with a quick sweep of my newly polished sword and lock the door. I then lay her in her bed – being careful to position her head neatly over the stump of her neck – and pull the covers over her. Spying some buckets partially filled with water, I take a drink then pour the rest onto the floor to thin the blood. I hide behind the stairs spiraling upwards towards the top of the tower – my shadowy form blending nicely there – and draw a table there closer to me. Night would be here soon, at which time I would be better able to finish making preparations for my journey to Balmora. There I sleep until the darkness comes…


	2. Seyda Neen

**Chapter 2**

The night is cool and slightly damp as a storm moves in over the village of Seyda Neen. Occasionally, the sound of distant thunder rolls over the trees, echoing between the structures that make up the tattered town. At least, that was true for the _outside_. Here within the circular walls of the lighthouse, the sound of clattering armored feet and the grunts of angry men resonated through the tower. The body of the former occupant of this tower had been found, as was I, despite my shadowy form hidden in the shadow of the stairwell. I probably shouldn't have moved the table; she didn't do much to keep the place clean and that rendered my attempt at legerdemain flawed. Well, that and the torch that nearly set fire to my wing.

A rather burly guard pulled me from my hiding place as several more smothered me in an attempt – a rather successful attempt – to keep me subdued. Shackles are fastened to my limbs and a rope is tied around my body, probably to keep me from flying away. Not that I could fly for very long anyway – our wings are not as strong as here as on the Demiplane. 

"Evidence," one of the guards announced as he lifted my sword to inspect it. The blood was still slightly moist against the steel. I can imagine how it would look with the fool's entrails decorating the blade. What a wonderful sight that would be! Alas, as tied up as I am, I will have to wait. "Take him away."

The guards take me back to the Census Office where another guard waits patiently for our little group. I immediately recognize him. "I told you I'd sssee you again."

"Insolent, wretched, creature. I'll teach you to respect authority!" he cries as he backhands my head. Ouch! Yeah, he's definitely on the list now. What a wonderful necklace his skull and backbone will make. "Take him inside. I'll inform Socucius," he tells them as he opens the door to the Census Office.

Now they lead me through the reception room and to a small enclosure located near the room where I found the dagger. Inside are a couple of kegs, some crates, and a bedroll. All that and a door, which they promptly shut and lock. Outside, I can hear them whispering to one another, though I do not understand what they are saying. Nothing good, no doubt. I bide my time until I'm sure there is only a guard or two, then I make my move. With a swift kick, the door breaks off its hinges and I am free of my little prison. The two guards by the door immediately react, drawing their blades to defend themselves against what is essentially the end of their miserable lives. I grab the first guard and force him between the other guard and me, using him as a shield against the second guard's thrust. Even as my little friend gurgles from the blood welling up in his throat – the other must have punctured a lung – I force his sword arm against his partner, slashing at his chest with the blade that was meant for me. I drop my dying shield and reach towards the throat of the stumbling guard, ensuring I'm still holding onto it as the rest of his body falls to the floor. That's when my friend from earlier bursts into the room. I drop the trachea from my hand and breathe my wretched breath upon him, enveloping the unsuspecting human in a cloud of icy darkness, thus draining his life and healing me with his essence as I breathe it back in. He slumps over, and then all is silent.

I start to leave when I realize that my friend may be of some use. I strip him of his gear, don his armor, and grab his sword. Ah, such a fine blade! Much better than the one I acquired earlier. After checking for some loose change, and helping myself to the same in the office proper, I remove his head and tear his vertebrae from his back and ribs. After stuffing my trophy into his pack, I exit through the back door where they had only hours before led me through and look around. No one could be seen by the docks, nor did I hear anyone. Looking up, I spy a balcony that I hadn't quite noticed before when I first arrived. I jump up towards it, using my wings to give me an extra boost and land safely on the balcony floor. A locked door bars my entrance, but another kick soon remedies that minor inconvenience. Inside, a large number of gold coins sit atop a table. I pocket the coins and look around some more. A large chest sits next to the door, but it is locked. It is obvious that any attempt to force the lock would be futile, at least without lockpicks. Besides, I don't have time for such nonsense, so I exit into the hall and descend a flight of stairs, leading me to another door and what appears to be a warehouse. Crates are stacked against the wall, and barrels are stacked against the crates. Another stairwell spirals upward into a tower, where there are no doubt more barrels or crates to be found. I start searching the crates, finding some armor pieces that are slightly superior to my own and a weapon or two that I find more desirable to what I'm holding now. Discarding what I no longer need or desire and donning he rest, I climb the flight of stairs.

Atop the stairwell are a couple of barrels and some sacks. Opening one of the sacks I discover the blessed ambrosia of the Gods, moon sugar. Ah, the small petals melt in my mouth as I feel a rush of strength and euphoria wash over me. Looking through the barrels I find more herbs, though none as desirable as the white petals of moon sugar, a worthless trinket or two, and a vial of skooma, which I immediately pour down my throat. The euphoria from the moon sugar is immediately magnified by the addictive effects of the pale liquid, couple with a subdued sense of rage. I jump down the center of the spiral believing myself invincible and crash to the floor. Oops! I probably should have at least used my wings to float down! Oh well, the skooma seems to have dulled the pain to a minor nuisance anyway, so I brush myself off and return to the door I found earlier, not paying any mind to the small trail of blood dripping from my body somewhere. I unlock the door – a simple latch, nothing more – and walk outside. There is no activity in the immediate vicinity, though torchlight from the opposite building – no doubt the Census Office – tells me a guard or two are investigating my departure. I immediately run towards the opposite side of town, near where the tavern – what the hell was that? - is, and cross a bridge there, leading me out of town and into a small swamp nearby, where I am greeted my pesky mosquitoes bent on bleeding me to death. Looking around, I notice the large flea-like creature I glanced at earlier. I walk towards it, finding a set of stairs and a platform leading beyond its long legs towards its body. I climb the stairs slowly, still high from the skooma.

"Wh-where would you like to go? We offer transport to a number of locations at very little cost to you," a Dunmer female offers. Just as most of the people I have encountered, she seems a little tense before me, as if frightened by my presence. Why shouldn't she be? After all – was that a butterfly just now? – I'm a scary guy. Especially considering what I'm capable of…Nah, I probably just startled her, as she might have seen me in the darkness until I was practically in her face.

Ah, now I remember. Silt striders. The Dunmer hollow out their bodies and use them as transport. They manipulate their organs to move them wherever they wish, thus saving valuable time in travel. The Dunmer – dark elves, by the way – looked at me somewhat impatiently. "Balmora," is all I say to her as I hand her a small amount of gold. Judging from her reaction, it mustn't have been enough, but she wasn't about to argue the point. I think that if I was to look at her menacingly enough, she'd probably wet herself from fear and anxiety. Then I'd have to smell the wretched odor of her urine all the way to Balmora, and, not knowing exactly where that was or how long it would take to get there, I'm not willing to endure that. We both climb inside the belly of the beast, where she places her hands upon some of the exposed tissue, forcing the strider to move forward. I lean back, intent on – there it is again! Is that a butterfly? – getting some rest after such a busy day.

Meanwhile, the sound of guards rushing about in their rusted armor pieces and their shouts of confusion and accusation slowly fade into the night.


	3. Pelagiad

**Chapter 3**

The sun rose bright over the eastern horizon as the bustling sounds of the city intruded upon the morning air. The light of the morning sun now blinds me with its radiant misery. I must have fallen asleep last night. Perhaps the motion of the silt strider rocked me to sleep with its sweet lullaby. Speaking of which, we've stopped moving. Looks like the cabby has gone, too. So did the butterflies. Hmmm, I'm feeling a bit hungry. Too bad the cabby's gone. At least I have that treat the guard gave me, and it's already on a stick to boot!

Looking up from the silt strider, I notice that we have arrived at what must be Balmora. Not much of a city, actually. It looks more like a town. Buildings are lined up along a central stretch leading up to a fortress of some kind. Strange that we would have stopped so far from the town, though. Maybe the local bureaucracy won't allow silt striders near city limits. I don't blame them, either. These things stink of squashed roaches. They don't look much different, either, with there organs exposed the way they are. Hmmm, I wonder if she wouldn't mind if I…

The silt strider buckles then falls forward, throwing me to the ground ahead of it. Fooling around with the infernal creature's organs probably wasn't the best idea. Looking around, I notice that maybe my meddling wasn't completely to blame: Lying beneath the legs of the wretched beast is the body of the cabby. It would seem that maybe we were attacked along the way, or perhaps she simply had to stop and drop dead. Picking up my snack and wiping the grass from the base of his neck, I walk over to the corpse of my benefactor and inspect, only to discover the lack of any wounds. Must've had to stop and drop dead. Gnawing on the cheeks of the guard who would soon serve as a neck ornament, I walk towards the town.

"Halt!" One of the guards roaming the town perimeter runs up to me, his pike pointed towards my head. "What do you have there, Argonian?"

Argonian?! Again, how many Argonians have wings? Stupid idiot, I don't even have a tail! "He attacked me. He killed my sssilt ssstrider and my driver. Besssidesss, I have to eat, right?" Why am I so hungry anyway? Prison ship food must not be too filling. "A fitting punishment, if you asssk me."

"Nonetheless, it is not civilized to chew on another's head while in town. Besides, I don't know if what you are telling me is true. It is more likely that _you_ attacked that strider and have eaten most of the passenger already! Murder holds a heavy price here, friend!" By this time, two more guards have shown up, each with weapons drawn. "Put the head down and relinquish your weapons. NOW!!" Somehow I get the impression that he doesn't like me very much. Maybe he's angry about something. Maybe I have his brother. I really don't have time for this.

"I didn't attack the sssilt ssstrider, nor did I kill the driver. I did, however, kill thisss poor cow here." I lift up the head, and then throw the whole ensemble to the ground. "I told you my reasssonsss. What will it take for you to let me passss?"

A guard walks up from the fallen silt strider, of which had stood back up and now waits patiently where it had fallen. "No sign of foul play there. It looks like the strider tripped on the Dunmer there and killed her." Yeah, that's what happened. Doesn't explain my breakfast, though.

"Looks like you're off the hook for the strider and its driver, but that doesn't explain the man on the ground, or what's left of him. That also doesn't explain why you lied to me about being attacked. These are very serious allegations against you, citizen. Two-hundred gold and the prompt disposal of that…corpse…will cause me to forget I ever saw this, and guarantee the silence of my compatriots here."

I reach into my sack and produce the cash box I acquired earlier. Opening it – the idiot didn't even lock the damned thing – I discover more than enough to pay the proposed fine. "Ssso be it," I tell the guard, handing him a pile of gold equaling – if not exceeding – the proposed two-hundred piece fee.

"Thank you. Pelagiad may not be the place for you right now. Since we do not have a strider port here, and judging from the direction you were probably traveling, you may have been going to Balmora or perhaps even Gnaar Mok. Balmora is the closer of the two; you merely need to continue traveling north along the main road. Beware the nix hounds along the way. Too bad your driver is dead; you'll have to walk the rest of the way – unless you know how to control one of those things, that is." No, that didn't work out very well. I nod to the man, pick up my snack, and hit the road, noting the location of this quaint little town. I have no business here now, but I do intend on returning to show those pathetic fools what murder really is. 

Walking is such a mundane activity. The peaceful sounds of nature seem to scream in the back of my head, making it difficult to concentrate on the tasks before me. What was his name? Caius Cosades? I'm more interested in finding the sword I left in that wretched fortress Serpenthold of Solstheim so many years ago. I didn't have much of a choice – not with that Telvanni bounty hunter chasing after me, anyway. There was something about him; he seemed more predator than prey. If it wasn't for that blasted unicorn – what the hell was a unicorn doing all the way up there, anyway? Anywhere in Morrowind, no less? – I wouldn't have been caught. Who would think a horse with a party favor sticking out of its head would be so difficult to kill? Where the hell did those gold angels come from, anyway? Oh well, that damned horse is probably stringy anyway. Its horn would have made a good toothpick, though.

Less than an hour into my journey, I encounter what appears to be a woman. Human. She seems to be crying about something. I try to ignore her, but she seems intent on bothering me anyway. Something about being robbed while traveling along this road. Like I care. Worse still, she seems to be in love with the guy who robbed her! Filthy creature. I immediately remedy her insanity with a quick slash and stab of my blade. Hmmm…I haven't really eaten yet – that little snack earlier surely doesn't count towards a decent meal. No sense in wasting the prey…

Back on the road again, I find that walking can be rather unsettling. The sun so high above is a constant bother; not like the soft blanket of night that I am so accustomed to. Too bad I slept the night away – I'd much rather walk under moonlight than this life-draining fire-in-the-sky eyesore that cascades its filth upon the land, displaying the land's true ugliness. An hour more into my journey and I discover what must be one of those nix hounds the guards warned me about. Fortunately, the unfortunate thing hadn't noticed me yet, so naturally I pounce on it with sword drawn. I catch it by surprise, grappling its back while gliding the blade of my sword across its throat, feeding the grass with its precious blood. Another hound joins the fray, snapping its jaws around my calf with such force I nearly drop my sword. I let myself fall off the now dying nix hound and kick violently to loosen the second. The creature tightens its bite; I can feel blood pouring from my leg into its mouth. The hound starts to pull backward, as if to tear my leg from the rest of my body. Sword still in hand, I swing wildly at the beast, striking its head and almost my leg as well. The creature stumbles back, its grip on my leg now gone. I stand up, almost falling over from the painful sting of the creature's bite. The nix hound recovers and leaps at me; I duck and raise my sword, gutting the creature from its neck down. As the creature flies through the air, I feel its warm entrails blanket me. I straighten myself once more, brushing the foul creature's entrails to the ground.

Argh, now I need a bath! I take a step forward before being painfully reminded of the wound I suffered on my leg. Reaching under my breastplate, I tear a strip from my garment and tie it around my leg with hopes that the bleeding will subside. I then start to walk again, the stench of the infernal creature's organs assailing my nostrils with each step. Screw this! I jump into a nearby tree and climb to the top to look around. A lake! I immediately glide to its shore and strip myself of all but my bandage. Rinsing my armor and clothing first, I wade in the cool water, allowing the oils fluids of the nix hound to wash away. Ah, how rela…something bit me! I look into the water but find it hard to see anything there. I dive in and look around. Schools of slaughterfish swim around me, taking jabs at me with open mouths. Not wanting to be their next meal, I swim to shore and climb out, suffering only a few nicks here and there.

Hmmm…I'm not alone. While donning my clothing and armor, I cautiously look around. Someone is rustling through the flowered bushes nearby. I secure the rest of my equipment and with sword in hand, I approach the intruder.

"AH! Oh, you startled me. You-you're not going to kill me, are you? I don't have much on me, but what do have is yours. Please, don't hurt me," the intruder pleads. A young Dunmer male, frail and obviously unable to physically defend himself, is picking flowers from the bushes.

"What are you doing, prey? Why are you here?" I ask him menacingly. If I hadn't eaten already, he'd be dead by now.

"I-I'm gathering herbs for the Mage's Guild. I need these to pass my first test," he tells me, obviously frightened. A pool of yellow liquid gathers by his feet.

"Why?"

"It's a requirement of the guild for advancement. Please don't h-hurt me."

"Where isss thisss guild? Tell me quickly, prey."

"B-Balmora. I was about to return there. Th-these were the last of the specimens I n-needed. Please let me go. I'll give you everything I have if you would sp-spare me. Please!"

Considering what he had told me, I decide to take him up on his offer. I grab him by the throat and flick my wrist in such a way as to easily snap his neck. He did say everything, after all. Then I keep my end of the bargain: I let go of him. I grab his bag of herbs and flowers and leave the poor bastard there, slumped over the bush he had picked at last. I return to the road and travel northward again. Off in the distance, the sun begins its decent into the west, dusk only hours away.


End file.
